County on board for development of new VC park

Plans for the acquisition of a new 43-acre park continue to move forward after a fruitful meeting between members of the land acquisition committee, Doug Johnsen, general manager of the Valley Center Parks and Recreation District (VCPRD), and representatives from County Parks and Recreation.

"I thought that meeting went very well considering that you have two agencies talking with one another," said Will Rogers at the VCPRD board meeting on Feb. 19. Rogers is a local architect working on conceptual designs for the park.

"I thought [the county was] very open to the land acquisition," said Rogers. "They were very consistent in saying that it has to be active recreation."

According to Johnsen, the county advised VCPRD they can use $326,000 of Public Land Dedication Ordinance (PLDO) funds to acquire the property, pay for the appraisal, and develop new facilities, as long as they are for active use.

The parcel is sandwiched between Valley Center and Vesper roads just west of Mactan Road. Although the total size of the parcel is 43 acres, only the northern 15.5 acres are being considered for immediate acquisition in phase 1 of development.

To accommodate the county's priorities, Rogers revised conceptual level drawings for phase 1. The latest rendition includes a skate park, BMX track, basketball courts, sand volleyball courts, and a barn for equestrian use, as well as a community center and gymnasium.

The Parks and Recreation District is also looking for input on their community questionnaire. According to Johnsen, there are 3,406 parcels in Valley Center, and the district needs at least 300 responses for the survey to produce viable results. So far about 100 surveys have been submitted.